Washing machine



`D607, 1937 f l A. A. ALDRIDGE 2,101,634

` WASHING MACHINE Filed Oct. 2, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet l Dec. 7,1937. A.AfALDRlDGE WASHING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed oct, 2, .192e

Dec. 7, 1937. A 'A ALDRIDGE 1 2,101,634

WASHING MACHINE Filed Oct. 2, 1926 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Dec. 7,1937 UNITED STATES WASHING MACHINE Arthur A. Aldridge, Paxtang, Pa..assigner of one-fourth to William A. Laird, Chambersburg, Pa., andone-half to William T. Gardner, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application October 2, 1928, Serial No. 139,118

2l Claims.

'I'his invention relates to washing machines and particularly to clotheswashing machines for household use.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a machine by which thecomplete process of washing, rinsing and drying may be carried outwithout touching the clothes and without removing the lid of themachine. Another object of the invention is to provide suitable gearingbyY which a foraminous container, in which the clothes are placed, maybe oscillated to effect the washing operation and then raised andrapidly rotated for centrifugal drying. A further object d water, and toprovide a machine in which the water will not splash againstthe-container during the drying operation.

Other object/s of the invention and features of novelty will be apparentfrom the following specication, when read with the accompanyingdrawings, in whichz- Figure 1 is a view in vertical section of a machineembodying my invention, some of the parts being shown in elevation andthe lower position of the container being indicated by dotted lines;

Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of the lid of the machine shown inFig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the machine shown in Fig. 1, the lid beingremoved;

Fig. 4 is a view in side elevation of the control lever and other partsshown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view -of details of the machine shown inFig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the gearing shown in Fig. 1, with the coverplate oi the gearing compartment removed;

Figs. 7 and 8 are views in plan showing details of the clutch membersand,

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary plan view, partly in section, showing details ofparts of the machine shown in Fig. 1.

The embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings comprises a lowercasing consisting of a cylindrical casing member Il of the same diameteras the tub, a base ring I 2 anda top ring Still further objects are (ci.cs is) I3 preferably anged, to receive the edges of the member II andhold it in place. 'Ihree braces I4 are secured at their ends to theupper face of the base ring I2, as shown in Fig. 6, the braces being ofangle iron and serving as a support for a gear box I5 and a motor I8,the gear box being secured to the braces by tap screws and the motorbeing mounted on the braces in any manner desired. A lead I6 to a switch|65, which is mounted at any convenient point on the lower casing I I,is provided for supplying current to the motor. Attached to the basering I2 are ball casters I'I, preferably three in number, to facilitatemovement of the machine from place to place. The gear box I5, which ispreferably a casting, is open at the top and provided with a lid I 3,and braces of angle iron secured at their ends to the top ring I3 arearranged so that their flanges overlie the edges of the lid I8, and tapscrews I9 pass downwardly through the braces 2li and the lid I8 tosecure them to the top of the gear box.

A cylindrical tub or tank, of the same diameter as the lower casing I Iwhich houses the gear box, is supported upon the ring I3, the latterbeing formed with an annular flange 2i within which the tub fits. Asshown, the tub comprises a wall portion 22, a bottom portion 23, and acentral tubular shaft support 24 which has a flange 26 engaging thebottom portion 23. The parts are secured together by a' plurality of capscrews 21 which pass downwardly through the ange 25, the bottom portion23 anda fillet 28, preferably of wood, and are threaded into the lid I8to prevent relative rotation of the tub and its support and provide arigid support of the shaft support 24 from the base ring I2 throughlower angle iron braces I4 and gear box I5. The bottom portion 23 isdished downwardly at its center and is formed with a downwardlyextending peripheral flange 29 about which the lower edge of the wallportion 22 is curled. From the lowest point of the bottom -portion 23,adjacent the flange 26, a drain 30 extends radially beyond the edge ofthe gear box where it is bent down and preferably terminates in asuitable valve 3| within the lower casing I l. It will be apparent thatthe valve 3l may be arranged outside of the casing, but it is preferableto place it inside and provide a door 32 in the casing to permit accessto the valve and storage of a exible hose which may be attached to thevalve.

A driving shaft 34, terminating in a squared portion 35, is rotatablyand reciprocably mounted in the shaft support 24, and carries theclothes container 36, which has a hollow hub portion 31 which extendssubstantially to the top of the clothes container 36, and is providedwith an opening 38 at its top to receive and form a driving connectionwith the squared portion 35 of the shaft well above the center ofgravity of the container. The hub 31 is of sufficient diameter andlength to receivel the shaft support 24 when the container is moved toits lower position, and has a flange 89 at its lower end underlying andrigidly secured to the bottom of the container 38. T'he bottom and sidewalls of the container are formed with perforations lill, and fourbaiiies or hurdles 4I, similarly perforated, are secured in the anglebetween the bottom and side walls,

being equally spaced circumferentially, as shown in Fig. 3, and withtheir free upper edge slanting radially outwardly and upwardly. Fourtriangular imperforate ilns 42, for agitating the water, are secured inthe angle between the bottom of the container 36 and its hub 31, beinglikewise equally spaced clrcuinferentially` but interposed between thebaiiies 4 I, as shown in Fig. 3.` These fins 42 extend upwardly toapproximately half theheight of the hub 31 but their radial extent ismuch less as shown in Figs. l and 3.

The side wall of the container 36 is substantially cylindrical exceptadjacent its upper edge where the wall is extended outwardly anddownwardly, forming an edge 43, as shown in Fig. 5,

and then curved back to form a scum trough 44, the diameter of the upperedge of the container being oi' slightly less diameter than the body ofthe container.

The side wall may be formed integrally, if desired, but is preferablyformed in two parts as shown, the trough portion 44 and the wall whichcurves inwardly above it being` formed as a separate part 33 with itslower edge curled over the top of the side wall of the container properor otherwise suitably secured thereto. The trough portion 44, below theedge 43, is not perforated but the recurved wall has a, row ofperforations just above the level of-such edge.

A lid 45, having a ange 46 resting upon the top edge of the tub and adownwardly extending flange 41 to t therein, is provided with acentrally disposed frustro-conical sprinkling head 48 on its under side,the nozzle being connected with a conduit 49 permanently installed inthe lid and extending through the edge of the lid where it is providedwith a nipple 50. The edge of the lid 46 is bent in to form an annularchannel 5I to receive a flexible hose 52, attached at one end to thenipple 50, and provided at its other end.

with a connection 53 for attachment to a faucet. A spring clip 54 issecured to the lid within the channel 5I, so that, as shown in Fig. 2,the hose 52 may be wrapped about the lid and its free end secured bysaid clip.

vAt a point slightly below the water line and also below the position ofthe scum trough 44 when the container 36 is in lower position, anannular baille ridge 55 is formed by curving in the side wallioi' thetub to present a downwardly and inwardly facing concave surface. Whenthe container 36 is elevated and rotated for centrifugal Y drying thewater level' falls below this surface and water striking the side wallwill be directed inwardly without splashing against the bottom of thecontainer. 'I'he tub is also formed with a plurality of circumferentialribs 56 which, with the baille ridge 55, serve to stiffen the structure,and a strap 61 is secured to the outside of the tub adjacent its upperedge and is formed with three notches 68 to receive a control lever 69in its various positions.

The lid I8 of the gear box I5 is thickened at its center and acts as abearing for a gear nut 86 which is threaded on the shaft 34, and isretained in place in the lid by a flange 6I which engages the lower faceof the lid and av retaining collar 62 threaded upon and secured by key6I!b 65, adapted to be driven by a worm 66 on the shaft of the motor I6which projects through the wall of the gear box. Upper and lowerfrustro-conical clutch members 61 and 68 are rotatable with the wormgear y65, and are formed for engagement with 'clutch member 69 or 10,splined to the shafts 63 and 64, respectively, and operated to and fromclutching engagement by a yoke 1l.

When the yoke 1I is raised to engage clutch members 68 and 10, the lowershaft 64 will be continuously rotated by .the motor, and through a gear12 thereon and reduction gears 13 and 14, which are mounted on the baseof the gear box I5 will drive an eccentric 15, mounted on the gear 14,and a cooperating pitman 16, to oscillate anarcuate rack member 11. Agear 18 is mounted on the lower end of the driving shaft 34, and whenthe shaft is in its lower position such gear is in mesh with the arcuaterack 'member 11, the teeth of the gear being slightly beveled at theirlower ends to facilitate engagement with the teeth of the rack member.

Secured to the upper shaft 63 is a gear 18 continuously in mesh with theteeth of the gear nut 60, and when the yoke 1I is lowered to engage theclutch'members 61 and 69, the shaft 63 and gear 'I9 will rotate the nut60, which is threaded upon the lower threaded portion 34B of the shaft34, and by reason of its threaded engagement with the driving shaft 34,will raise the shaft 34, together with the clothes container 36 and thegear 18 until they reach the full line position shown in Fig. 1. Afdisk80 of friction material, is interposed between the adjacent faces of thegear nut 60 and the gear 18, being preferably loosely carried on theshaft 34, and supported by the gear 18, and when the container 36 hasreached its uppermost position it will be rapidly rotated, being drivenby the gear 19, gear nut 60 and the clutching engagement of the frictiondisk 80 with the gear 18. The, raising of the container 36 is readilyeffected because of the resistance of the water and the inertia of thecontainer and its contents, though the container will attain somerotative movement before the clutching engagement between gear nut 66and gear 18. It will be apparent that under the action of the gear'nut60 and the threaded driving shaft 34, the gear 18 will constantly tendto rise, and the disk 80 will provide for slippage between nut 66 andgear 18until the container attains the same speed as the nut 60. Y

The yoke 1I is slidably mounted on a guide bar 8l, which is mounted inthe bottom of the gear box, and a bracket 8| in the side of the gearbox, and passes through the arms of the yoke. A link 82 connects theyoke 1I to a crank arm 83 on the inner end of a shaft 84 which ismounted in the wall of the gear box and a bracket 65 carried by the topring I3 of the supporting frame. Inside of the bracket 85,' the shaft 84has another crank arm 86 secured to it, and the control lever Il isloosely mounted upon the shaft Il outside of the bracket Il. and has awidened portion below its pivot formed withinwardly bent perforated lugsl1 between which thecrank arm Il is ceived, as shown in Figs. 1 and' 4.The lugs 81 the plungers being limited by cotter pins al, or

other suitable means. It will be apparent that the lever Il may be heldin three positions by the notches Il in the strap l1, and that the yoke1I will be resiliently .moved by it to engage clutch members 01 and "Lto hold the clutch in neutral position, or to engage clutch members Iland 10.

As shown in Figs. 'I and 8, the driving clutches I are so formed asr todrive only in one direction and permit relative motion of the clutchparts in'the event l.that the momentum of the container and its 4loadtends to rotate the member 89 or 10 at ya speed greater than that of theworm gear and the inner clutc i; inembers Q1 and 6l. To this end theclutch members l! and 10 are each formed with two ribs- QI `which'areadapted to cooperate with ratchet teeth l2 formed on the inner surfaceof clutch members I1 and Il. The ribs 9i will engage the ends oftheteeth 92 so that the members IT and 0l may drive the member 69 or l0,but any tendency to transmit the drive in the opposite direction willcam the member t9 or 10 away from its cooperating inner clutch member,the yoke fli and its operating means being Yieldable by reason 'of theresilient connection afforded by Asprings I9. v

The container 36 is normally in the lower dotted line position shown inFig. 1, vand after the clothes to .bewashcd are placed therein and thetub has been lilled with water to approximately the line A--Athe lidIltis put in place and lever 59 moved to engage clutch members 68 and Itso that the container I6 will be oscillated by the arcuate rack member11 and itsv gearing. During this oscillating movement, the perforatedbaiiles 4i, by compressing the clothes and by resisting their movementso that the water will pass through them, will materially accelerate thewashingaction, and will assist the ilns t2 in agitating the water andthe clothes therein. 'I'he baiiies and the'flns define a tortuous pathwhich the water and clothes must follow as they move within thecontainer, and even during the oscillating washing movement the clotheswill tend to distribute themselves evenly around the container.

During the` 'comparatively slow oscillating movement of the containerthe ripples on the surface will splash the heavy scum 'over the edge 43where it will be retained in the trough M. When the containerhas beenelevated and is rotated 'at highspeed the centrifugal action will throwthis scum through the perforations approximately level with such edge I3and against the inner wall ,of the tub. When the washing operation iscompleted the control lever 5! is moved to disengage clutch members andIii and engage clutch members and 6l to rotate gear nut 6l, which willslowly raise the driving shaft 3l, disengaging gears 'Il and When theshaft II and container' l! have been raised to effect a drivingengagement between gear nut 60 and gear 18. through the interposedfriction disk Bl, the rotation of the container will be acceleratedun'til'it attains the lsame speed as gear nut' u. 'rhs clothes may'thenbe rimes bym;

mitting water to the sprinkler head and the rotation of the container 1scaanued for s surv I the container Il.. after disengagement of gearmembers 18 and 1l,v will attain slow rotative movement beforeit israised out of the wai. er and this slow continuous movement in onedirection, coupled with the agitatingeilect of the ins I2 and banies 41, will result in a substantially equal distribution o f the clotheswithin the container, and after the container has risen above thesurface of the water the Il will prevent my substantial vchantre in'slch distribution as ine rotation of the container'is accelerated.

When it is desired to lower the container from its upper position to thewashing position. the clutch control lever l! may be moved to neutralposition to throw out the clutch, and the container I8, nut, antigear-1" may be rotated by hand in the direction opposite to' that inwhich they moved during the drying operation,and by arresting themovement of the container and pressing downfupon vit such downward forceaided by the force"ofgrayityI will continue the rotation of nut IBandgear Iluritil gear IlK engages the arcuate rack'inember 11. It willalso be apparent that, when the clutch is operated to effect oscillationof rack member '11, the teeth of gear 18 can mesh with 4the teeth of therack member il when they are moving in the same direction.

It will be apparent that the complete operation vof washing, rinsing anddrying can be carried out without removing the lid of the tub. Theconstruction of the lmaohine is such that it can be economicallymanufactured and comprises few parts in addition to the'necessarygearing. The tubular shaft support'is rigidly supported fromthe base ring vto effect great stabilltyl and a minimum of vibration,the gearingis completely enclosedl thereby avoiding 'all possibility ofaccident and permitting'eifcctive lubrication. It will be understoodthat other clutch structures might be used and that other changes mightbe made in the size of parts and` 'details of construction withoutdeparting froi'nfthe scope of the invention which is 'donned inthefollowing claims,

What is claimedfisz-fl 1. In a washing machine, the combination of atub, a perforated'A container for the clothes to be washed. means forelevating said container within said tub and rotating it 'forcentrifugally drying the clothes, aremoyable lid for said tub, and meanscarried by said lid for supplying water for rinsing the clothes'whilesaid lid is in place on said tub.A

2. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub. a perforatedcontainer mounted for rotation therein and adapted to receive the'clothes to be washed, a removable lid for said tub, means operable tomove said container within the lower part of the tub for washing theclothes, means for elevating said container and rotating it forcentrifugall'y Ldrying the clothes, and means permanently carried bysaid lid for supplying rinsing water to the clothes while the lid is inplace on said tub.

3. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer for the clothes to-be washed, means for rotating saidcontainer within said tub for centrifugally drying the clothes,` aremovable lid for said tub having an annular peripheral channel; aconduit carried by said lid for supplying water to the clothes whilesaid lid is in place on said tub, a flexible conduit connected to saidfirst conduit and means for securing said flexible conduit within saidperipheral channel.

4. In a washing machine, the combination of a support, a tub thereon, anut rotatably carried by said support, a perforated container for theclothes to be washed, a driving shaft supporting said container andsupported by and having threaded engagement with said nut, and means forrotating said nut to elevate said container ywithin said tub, said shaftand said container having driving engagement to transmit rotarymovement.

5. In a washing machine. the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer, a shaft supporting said container, a nut mounted for rotationbut held from vertical movement and having threaded engagement with saidshaft, means for rotating said nut to elevate said container and itsshaft, and means on said shaft for cooperation with said nut to transmitrotary motion from said nut to said shaft.

6. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer, a vertically disposed driving shaft supporting said containerand having a gear thereon, gearing adapted to positively engage saidgear to oscillate said container, gearing for frictionally driving saidgear to rotate said container continuously in one direction, powermeans, and means for alternatively connecting said power means to one orthe other set of gearing.

'1. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer within said tub, a vertically disposed driving shaftsupporting said container and having a gear thereon, a nut mounted forrotation but held from vertical movement relative to said tub and havingthreaded engagement with said shaft whereby rotation of said nut willraise said shaft and said container within said tub, gearing in meshwith said gear in its lower position, and means for alternativelydriving said gearing or said nut.

8. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer having a centrally disposed hub projecting upwardly from thebottom of the container, outwardly projecting fins on said hub, radiallydisposed baille plates within said container, and means for oscillatingsaid container.

9. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer having a centrally disposed hub projecting upwardly from thebottom of the container, outwardly projecting fins on said hub,perforated baille plates secured within the container andcircumferentially spaced in staggered relation with said fins, and meansfor oscillating said container.

10. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a. perforatedcontainer mounted for rotation within said tub on a vertical axis, saidcontainer having an annular trough adjacent its upper edge, and meansfor rotating said container.

11. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer mounted for rotation Within said tub on a vertical axis, saidcontainer having an annular trough depending therefrom adjacent itsupper edge, and means for oscillating said container, raising saidcontainer and rotating said container at high speed within said tub andmovable from a lower to an upper position therein, means for rotatingsaid container when it is in its upper position, and an annular ridgeprojecting inwardly from of the tub below the bottom of the containerwhen it is in its upper position.

13. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer rotatably mounted within said tub and movablefrom a lower toan upper position therein, means for rotating said container when it isin its upper position, and an annular baie projecting inwardly from thewall of the tub below the bottom of the container when it is in itsupper position and having an inwardly and downwardly facing concavesurface.

14. In a washing machine, the combination of a base ring, a gear boxsupported on said base ring, a second ring supported on saidgear box, atub and a tubular shaft support disposed centrally therein and rigidlysecured thereto. said tub and support being supported on said gear boxand said upper ring, a perforated container, a driving shaft thereforextending through said shaft support, and gearing within said gear boxfor operating said shaft.'

, 15. In a Washingmachine, the combination of l threaded engagement withsaid shaft, means for g rotating said nut to elevate said container andVits shaft, and means on said shaft movable into clutching relation withsaid nut by the elevation of said shaft, said container having a centralupwardly extending tubular portion, and said shaft having a drivingconnection with said tubular portion above the center of gravity of saidcontainer to transmit rotary movement thereto.

16. In a clothes washing machine, a water receptacle, a perforatedclothes container'mounted within said receptacle for oscillatorymovement with relation thereto and having means arranged therein near`the axis thereof to impart oscillatory movement to the clothes throughthe water in said receptacle, and means for elevating said clothescontainer to lift the clothes therein out of the water in saidreceptacle.

17. In a clothes washing machine, a water receptacle, a perforatedclothes container mounted within said receptacle for oscillatorymovement with relation thereto and having two sets of agitators arrangedtherein and movable therewith, one set of said agitators being arrangednear the outer wall thereof and the other set of said agitators beingarranged near the axis thereof, and means for elevating said clothescontainer to lift the clothes therein out of the water in saidreceptacle.

18. In a washing machine, the combination of a tub, a perforatedcontainer having a centrally disposed hub projecting upwardly from thebottom thereof and having outwardly projecting fins thereon terminatingshort of the side wall of said container, a vertical shaft having adriving connection withand supporting said container from a point abovethe center of gravity of said container, and means for elevating androtating said, shaft.

19. In a machine for first cleansing and then extracting adhering liquidfrom fabric articles, in combination; an upright shaft, means foroscillating and rotating said shaft, a sleeve having a socket forengaging said shaft, a container for fabrics carried by and concentricwith said sleeve and having a wall which is formed with aperturesadjacent to its bottom, agitating means carried by said containerinterioriy of said wall and spaced inwardly therefrom, a casingsurrounding and spaced from said wall and holding liquid in contact withsaid fabrics, and means for removing .such liquid from said casing.

20. In a fabric cleansing machine, a container having a perforated sidewall formed as a surface of revolution coaxial with a vertical axis,said container having an open top and also having a vertical internalhub which projects upwardly inside the wall of said container, liquidagitating vanes carried by and projecting from said hub, a liquidholding casing surrounding' said container, a shaft extending throughthe bottomV of said casing and secured to the hub of said container, andmeans for selectively oscillating and rotating said shaft and container.

21. In a clothes washing machine, a water receptacle, a liquid holdingclothes container mounted within said. receptacle for rotatory andoscillatory movement with relation thereto and having two sets ofagitators 'arranged therein and movable therewith, one set of saidagitators being arranged on the side Wall thereof and the other set ofsaid agitators being arranged near the axis thereof, rotating means andoscillating means for driving said container, and means for elevatingsaid clothes container and for connecting it to said rotating means forcentrifugally extracting liquid from the clothes.

ARTHUR A. ALDRIDGE.

